Please note that the funds for 2008/09 are now fully committed. Updated information will be posted as soon as it becomes available.

Creative and Professional Development Bursaries 2008/9

Purpose of Fund

This fund has been established by HI~Arts with funding from Highlands and Islands Enterprise. Its purpose is to support creative practitioners based in the Highlands and Islands (defined by the area for which Highlands and Islands Enterprise has a remit: Arran, Argyll and the Islands, Highland, Western Isles, Orkney, Shetland and Moray) by helping to meet the costs of a range of activities which can assist the development of an individual’s creative and professional practice.
 

Scope of Fund

There are three levels of bursary available--£200, £500 and, in very exceptional circumstances, £1,000-- to support initiatives which will assist you to develop and extend your own creative and professional practice. This may include:

• To attend a major conference or symposium or to participate in activities which include or promote your own work
• To undertake training to extend your practice (eg into a new medium or field of activity)
• Research and development for a new project (eg gathering background material; workshopping with potential collaborators)

This is not an exclusive list. If you are unsure if your project may be eligible, please consult HI~Arts before submitting your application.

Applicants are encouraged to request the appropriate level of bursary for their project and will not automatically be awarded the maximum bursary available. HI~Arts reserves the right to offer an amount different from that requested.

Who is eligible?

Musicians, composers, writers, actors, directors, choreographers, dancers, theatreworkers, who have been resident in the Highlands and Islands for at least 12 months prior to the date of application to the Fund. This scheme is not open to visual artists and craftworkers, who can apply to the separate HI~Arts Visual Artists’ and Makers’ Awards Schemes, operated in partnership with the Scottish Arts Council.

The scheme is additionally open to those who are wishing to develop their skills in presenting and promoting the arts, rather than their own artistic practice (eg a local promoter, a small publisher, a festival organiser). The purpose of the bursary, however, must benefit the personal development of the applicant, and not the activities of the organisation (eg it cannot be used to supplement a festival budget, or the promotion of a new publication).

Criteria for decision making

• the extent to which your proposal meets the scope and purpose of the fund
• the relationship of your proposal to your own work as an creative artist or promoter
• the quality of your work
• the extent to which your proposal will benefit your personal creative and professional practice

And, for the exceptional bursary of £1,000:

• how the proposal will make a significant impact not only to your own work, but to the sector you work in, in the Highlands and Islands

Exclusions to eligibility

• Funding cannot be given towards the costs of undertaking major courses of study (i.e. lasting 6 months or more), whether part-time or full-time
• Funding is not available, for any purpose, if you are currently undertaking a full-time course of study
• Funding is not available for marketing costs (e.g. production of posters, brochures, promotional websites, etc). Production of a website or printed material may be eligible where they form an integral part of an art project.
• Applications will not be considered for projects already started, or planned to start before the relevant application deadline
• Applications cannot be made simultaneously to this scheme, and to SAC Artists Awards schemes, for the same project. It is however possible to apply subsequently to this scheme for a project which has been the subject of an unsuccessful application to any Scottish Arts Council scheme.
• Successful applicants cannot reapply for an additional award from this scheme for a period of not less than one year from receipt of the award . They are however eligible to apply to other Highlands and Islands Enterprise-supported schemes during this period, but only for a different project. Please note, that if successful, applicants can only receive a maximum of three bursaries in any five year period
• This scheme cannot be used to gain additional funds for any project which has already received funding from Highlands and Islands Enterprise. That is, this scheme cannot be used to ‘top up’ grants already received from HIE.

How to submit a proposal

Applications should be made to HI~Arts using the appropriate application form. The form should be accompanied by appropriate supporting material, such as:

• For writers and publishers, a sample text of not less than two, and not more than ten, printed sides of A4
• For musicians and composers: samples of your work in digital format
• For performers, directors and choreographers: reviews of your work, DVDs of work in which you have been involved, or references from promoters or collaborators.

Please mark clearly if you wish your supporting material to be returned. Please note that HI~Arts cannot accept responsibility for damage or loss of submitted material.

Your application should include a clear plan of proposed activity that shows how funds might be used (although please note that we do not require a detailed budget).

When to apply

Applications can be submitted at any time, but not less than EIGHT weeks before the start of the project or activity for which the funding is sought.

Your applications will be acknowledged on receipt by HI~Arts. Applications will then be considered within four weeks of receipt by a Panel including the Director of HI~Arts, and an independent expert assessor. You will be informed of the decision by HI~Arts no later than one week after the Panel meeting.

Equal Opportunities

This scheme is open to any individual based within the catchment area, regardless of race, colour, gender, disability, or sexual orientation. Decisions will be based entirely on the quality of the applicant’s work, and the benefits which will accrue from the proposed project.

Appeals

You can appeal against a funding decision only if there was additional information which existed but was not made available at the time the grant was considered, which would have materially altered the decision, or if the applicant considers there has been malpractice. Information on HI~Arts’ appeals procedures is available from the officer contact given below.

Publicity

You should note that it is HIE’s and HI~Arts’ policies to publicise the award of grants. All grants may be announced by either HI~Arts or HIE through the media or other means.

Officer contact:

Applications should be submitted to Laura Martin, Funding Schemes Manager, HI~Arts, at the address below, marked ‘creative bursaries’. Information on the scheme, and on other SAC funding for artists, is available from the SAC Visual Arts Department at 12 Manor Place, Edinburgh EH3 7DD (0131 226 6051).

HI~Arts
Fourth Floor
Ballantyne House
84 Academy Street
Inverness
IV1 1LU
Tel: 01463 717091
Fax: 01463 720895
e-mail: laura@hi-arts.co.uk  
Website: www.hi-arts.co.uk